


Merry Christmas, El Hopper

by Janaynay



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M, Gift Exchange, They love each other, i love them sm, mike and el celebrate christmas, they are adorable
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-19 17:19:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17005869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Janaynay/pseuds/Janaynay
Summary: Mike & El exchange Christmas gifts - and El wakes up to a special surprise.Aka the Christmas Fluff we deserve.





	Merry Christmas, El Hopper

**December 24th, 11:58 pm**

Mike should probably check the time again, but he hasn’t been able to make himself just yet. 

He is sitting on El’s bed, across from her, knees, palms, and foreheads pressed together, and it’s the first time he’s felt calm today, sitting here like this. El’s left thumb is tracing the length of his own, her honey eyes going from locked on his to fluttering shut, and he’s mesmerized by both her earnest gaze and her long lashes; by the gentle caress of her hands, the fan of her breath on his face.

They weren’t even talking, and hadn’t been in a couple minutes, but the silence had been comforting in the way it always was with El - a content, safe, silence, that always wrapped itself around Mike like hug. It was this that brought him to her window more nights than he could count, doing his best to wrangle his long limbs through the window and into her room as quietly as possible, as to not wake her dad. 

_(If Hopper knew, he pretended he didn’t, much to Mike’s relief. He understood their comfort in each other, and seemed to trust them - a trust that Mike and El did their best to honor in unspoken thanks.)_

So tonight, as he had many times before, Mike had squeezed himself into El’s window, this time with a wrapped gift clutched in his hands. After a kiss or two (or five) in greeting, and some whispered conversation, they settled into their current embrace only to be interrupted by Mike’s watch, which beeped on the hour, causing El’s grip to tighten on his hands as her face split into an enormous smile.

Mike tore his eye’s away from El’s grin to glance at his watch to confirm. Midnight. He looked back at El, and when he saw the way she was looking back at him, so happy and beautiful and adoring, his breath caught in his throat. 

“Merry Christmas, El Hopper,” he whispered, his voice low.

El’s eyes sparkled as they looked back at him. “Merry Christmas, Mike Wheeler,” she said reverently, her voice equally as quiet, like she was uttering a sacred prayer rather than a common greeting.

Her eyes fluttered closed as she leaned in. Mike stared at her for a moment, in awe of the girl in front of him, leaning towards him with trust and love, and had to swallow the lump in his throat. Sheesh, this holiday was making him all sentimental and mushy and  _ohmygod kiss your girlfriend already, Wheeler, before she thinks you forgot about her._

Mike closed the gap between them, releasing his grip on her hands so he could gently cup her face. They were both adorably flushed as they pulled apart, grinning at each other happily.

“I like ringing in Christmas with you,” El said, giving Mike’s arm a gentle squeeze.

“Me too. It’s my favorite tradition,” Mike said, tapping her nose affectionately before dropping his hands to rest on her knees.

“Mine too. I’m glad _you_ care enough to honor traditions.” El threw her head back dramatically, glaring pointedly at her bedroom door. “I mean,  _someone_  in this house has to.”

Mike chuckled, resisting the urge to boop her nose again. “He can’t hear you, you know.”

El scowled in response. “I know, but I hope he can sense my disdain,” she said, giving the door one final glare before turning back to Mike.

Mike hesitated, but went ahead anyway. “Is the aluminum tree that bad? I mean, sure it doesn’t smell the same, but I thought you still decorated it nicely.” Mike eyed his girlfriend playfully, knowing what he was walking on thin ice when it came to this topic.

“It smells terrible! And its tacky! And we always have a real tree,” El pouted. “It was our tradition, Mike! Its the-”

“-principal of the thing,” Mike finished, nodding in what he hoped came across as solemn agreement. He had heard her rant about this so many times he knew her speech by heart. “I know, El, I know. I’m sorry Hopper didn’t get you guys a real tree this year.”

He really was sorry. He knew how disappointed El had been - picking out a tree, dragging it into the house, decorating it with some holiday records on - this was one of her favorite parts of the holiday. Mike was usually invited to come help decorate (the fact that he always brought some of Karen’s Christmas baking certainly helped), Hopper and El picking him up on their way back from the tree lot - their tree tied precariously on top of the cruiser, El bouncing with excitement in the front seat. 

But this year Mike had driven to their place on his own, and was met with a different sight - El scowling on the couch while Hop swore a blue streak trying to assemble their tree out of the box. Some cookies for El and a beer for Hop seemed to smooth things over as Mike took over the set up. El still decorated the tree, Hop still controlled the record player, but the atmosphere was different. 

Mike had been hearing about El’s disappointment ever since. And he felt bad for her, he really did. He didn’t want it to ruin her Christmas.

“Hey,” he said, drumming his fingers on her knees, “I think I know what will turn that frown upside down.” He wiggled his eyebrows towards the two wrapped gifts at the end of her bed.

El beamed and lunged for them, almost falling off the bed in the process. Mike laughed, grabbing her ankles to steady her before she wiggled back onto the bed, presents in hand.

“You go first,” she insisted, holding a shiny red package out towards him.

Mike blushed, taking the package. To _Mike, Love El_ the tag said, with hearts doodled on every possible space. He peeled back the wrapping paper to reveal a pair of green, yellow and navy striped mittens. One was slightly bigger than the other, the bigger one being slightly more square. He looked at El, who was worrying her lip with her teeth.

“Sorry they’re ugly,” she said. “I made like, 3 pairs and these were the best ones.”

“Wait, you made these?” Mike gasped, immediately pulling them onto his hands. The bigger one was a little too big, but otherwise they were a good fit. “El, that’s amazing! You’re amazing,” he emphasized, smiling at her.

She blushed, covering her mouth with her hands for a moment, before reaching out to clasp a mitten-clad hand in her own. “I wanted to make you these because you’re always giving me yours when my hands are cold. But you need warm hands too,” she said softly.

Once again Mike had to swallow the lump in his throat. Sometimes he was really blown away by the ways El showed she cared about him. At first, it had almost made him uncomfortable, how much she seemed to care, how much she seemed to notice about him, but really, he just wasn’t used to it. He was more used to it now, but it still always seemed to stun him, just how much she noticed, just how much she cared.

He looked down at the mittens again, and decided that while they might be ugly and uneven, they were the most wonderful things Mike had ever seen.

“Thank you,” he said, leaning forward to press a soft kiss to her lips. “I love them. I’ll take good care of them.”

El smiled happily at him for a moment before her eyes trailed over to the lone unwrapped present. “My turn?”

Mike slid the gift toward her and she grasped it eagerly. His wrapping skills had not really improved over the years, but El never seemed to mind. She was the best person to give gifts to, always so enthusiastic and grateful no matter what the gift or how it was presented. All the same, Mike felt his stomach flutter with nerves as she tore back the green wrapping.

Under the wrapping was a box, and with careful hands, El removed the lid, gasping at what was inside. “Mike, these are amazing! Are these…oh my goodness, are theses made from-?”

“My old sweaters, yeah. My mom made them,” Mike said, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

Inside the box was a row of scrunchies made from scraps of Mike’s old sweaters – El’s favourites - that he had worn, then she had worn, until they were practically rags. El was devastated that they had worn out, so Mike had asked his mom if there was a way to salvage them. Karen had come up with the scrunchie idea, for which Mike was eternally grateful - even more so in this moment watching El pour over them.

El looked torn between admiring them one by one or launching herself at her boyfriend in excitement for a moment before choosing the latter, throwing her arms around his neck and knocking him backwards onto the bed. 

“I take it you like them,” Mike said, as he laughed and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Like them? I LOVE THEM,” she said, peppering his cheek and ear with kisses that made him laugh even more. She sat up to admire them more closely, before choosing a navy and green striped one and putting it into her hair. 

“There,” she beamed, “now I can keep a part of you close to me all the time.”

Mike waved a mitten at her. “Me, too.”

He looked down at the bigger mitten and had an idea. “Hey, gimme your hand, I want to try something.”

“Okay,” El said, offering her hand.  Mike clasped it in his own, and with relative ease, slid their intertwined hands into the bigger mitten. 

“Perfect!” Mike held their hands up triumphantly.  El threw her head back, covering her eyes with her other hand, collapsing onto the bed in embarrassment.

“You meant to do that, right?” Mike leaned over her, bumping her hand with his nose in an effort to get her to uncover her face. 

El slid her fingers apart to peek up at him. “I wish I could say I did.”

Laughing, Mike brought his free hand up to her face, sliding her hand away so he could look into her eyes. 

“If it helps, I like them even more now.”

“Really?” she asked, looking up at him finally.

Mike tried to remember how to breathe. His girlfriend truly was the most beautiful person he had ever seen - even now, with her hair slightly mussed, her face red from embarrassment and her eyes moving around his face, her expression earnest and anticipating. He leaned in close enough to feel her breath on his lips.

“Really, really,” he said, before capturing her lips in a kiss.

* * *

 

**December 25th, 1:15 am**

“El, I should go soon.”

“Mmm, no, stay,” she mumbled sleepily. “Please? Stay a little longer.”

He sighed, pulling her closer to him. “I won’t leave until after you’re asleep.”

She turned in his arms so they were face to face, hitching her leg over his thigh as if to trap him there. She had yet to open her eyes. “Promise?”

“Promise.” He couldn’t keep a smile off his face – she was too adorable when she was sleepy like this.

She bumped her nose against his, content and lazy, sending the butterflies in his stomach into overdrive. Leaning in, he kissed her softly one, two, three times.

“Mmm, Mike?”

“Yeah, El?” he said, brushing his lips against her forehead in a tender kiss.

“I love you.” Her eyes were still closed, but she gave a dopey, lovesick smile that he mirrored back to her.

“I love you too,” he whispered, lacing his fingers in her hair at the nape of her neck, unable to resist pressing his lips to her forehead one more time.

* * *

 

**December 25th, 5:48 am**

El woke with a start - why, she did not know, only that she was awake. Groaning, she pulled the blankets up to her chin, and rolled over to see a empty pillow beside her. Her eyes widened, taking in the empty spot where Mike had been earlier, and she found herself reaching out to the abandoned space, finding it cold. 

She sighed. She missed him already, silly as it was. When he was with her it just felt right. Complete. Her heart felt whole, at peace - like they belonged beside each other. And now she was awake and he was gone and she was cold and lonely.

Hugging his pillow to her chest, she let herself wallow in the loneliness for a moment, when something in the darkness caught her eye. A reddish hue that she been too sleepy and out of it to notice before was lighting up her bedroom.

Sitting up, El turned toward the source of light only to gasp in amazement.

In the corner of her room, by her window, was a Christmas tree. A real Christmas tree, standing around five feet tall. It’s a little thin, and looks slightly beaten up but it’s there and it’s real and it’s beautiful. She pinches herself, eyes wide, convinced she’s dreaming, but she’s awake and the tree is still there.

El feels pinned in place with shock, and all she can manage to do is stare at it, slack jawed. How did it get there? It’s decorated in coloured lights and ornaments, tinsel tossed haphazardly on its branches.

It hits her then.

“Mike,” she whispered, a smile tugging at her lips, her heart full to bursting. It had to be.

She doesn’t think she’s blinked yet. It’s so beautiful, she finds she can’t look away from it, and she needs a closer look. Sliding off the bed, El crawls towards it until she’s sitting on the ground in front of the tree, feet tucked beneath her, leaning her face toward it to breathe in its incredible scent.The floor is cold but she doesn’t care. Wild horses couldn’t drag her from this tree, from this miracle that Mike left for her.

 _How did he do it?_ She almost laughs out loud picturing him lugging it in through her window, then decorating it in silence in the dark of her room. Come to think of it, it’s amazing that the tree is in one piece. (She hopes Mike is, too.)

He’s amazing, he really is. That he would go through all this effort to do this for her…it brings tears to her eyes. She loves him so much it should be illegal. Through blurry eyes, El pours over the tree, basking in its scent and light, absorbing the joy it radiates and the love it was given in and she feels like she might pass out. It’s all too much. 

That’s when she sees it - the envelope nestled on a branch halfway up, her name written in a familiar scrawl with a signature lopsided heart beside it. Rising to her feet, she snatches it from the branch, grasping it tightly in her hands.

Trembling with anticipation, she opens the envelope to find a note that makes her heart leap and her eyes fill with tears. 

_“Dear El - I know we agreed on only one present each this year, but I got you two. I hope you can forgive me. I couldn’t resist, because I wanted to make you happy. You always, always deserve to be happy, and I will try to make sure you are every day. Also, you deserve all the beauty this world has to offer, so here is some of it just for you, in your own room. Merry Christmas, El. I love you. Mike.”_

Pressing the note to her heart, she sinks back down to her knees, and the tears that have been threatening to spill down her cheeks finally do. She can’t stop smiling though, and soon she’s laugh-crying, fully aware of how ridiculous she must look in this moment but she just couldn’t care.

She’s so incredibly happy right now, and she needs to talk to Mike. Still unable to look away from the tree, her hands begin fumbling blindly under her bed for the supercom. She cannot wait another second to thank him, to tell him the tree is the best gift in the world. 

Finally she has it in her hands, and is about to raise it to her lips, when she thinks to spare a glance at the clock.

6:05. Mike will still be sleeping, and it suddenly occurs to her that he may not have been sleeping for long. Who knows how long this took him to set up after she fell asleep? With a sigh, she puts the supercom down. Her gratitude can wait. Mike deserves to sleep as long as he can; frankly, he deserves the world.

But El won’t sleep another minute tonight. She couldn’t even if she tried. So with tired eyes and a happy heart, she sits in front of the tree, her tree, long after the sun trickles in through her curtains.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this as a Secret Santa gift for Mileven Secret Santa! I got the prompt, "Mike & El celebrate Christmas Eve/Christmas together." Hope I did it justice. Happy Holidays everyone!!!


End file.
